“Mom, the tiger lilies!”
Indeed, they are blooming,
now and finally,
my sweet, sweet son.
fiery red with golden middles
yawning praises towards the evening sun
the tiger lilies bloom
I look closer and see
a lady
taking refuge
in the burning heat of the petals
a lady
hidden
willing and childlike
in the blazing
embrace
risking the scalding
pain of ridicule
from those who would rather find refuge
in the blended greens of
envy
creeping toward
the underbelly of untruth
camouflaged in
the unvariegated lies of
boundary-less
wasteland
BUT
Shadrach
Meshach
and
Abednego
knew
the One who stood with them in the furnace
when the going got tough
and the tough got going
and the three walked alone
into the iron-clad stand
that really mattered
above all
man-made mirages
above all
myopia
knee-deep in ashes
they stood
and One stood with them
in the fire
and saved the three
who waved unsinged
at all the important people
One saved
three unimportant
men
who wavered not
for
Him
“There has never been a god who can pull off a rescue like this.”
Daniel 3:29
*****
“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, “Your threat means nothing to us. If you throw us in the fire, the God we serve can rescue us from your roaring furnace and anything else you might cook up, O king. But even if he doesn’t, it wouldn’t make a bit of difference, O king. We still wouldn’t serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.”
Nebuchadnezzar, his face purple with anger, cut off Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace fired up seven times hotter than usual. He ordered some strong men from the army to tie them up, hands and feet, and throw them into the roaring furnace. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, bound hand and foot, fully dressed from head to toe, were pitched into the roaring fire. Because the king was in such a hurry and the furnace was so hot, flames from the furnace killed the men who carried Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to it, while the fire raged around Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
Suddenly King Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in alarm and said, “Didn’t we throw three men, bound hand and foot, into the fire?”
“That’s right, O king,” they said.
“But look!” he said. “I see four men, walking around freely in the fire, completely unharmed! And the fourth man looks like a son of the gods!”
Nebuchadnezzar went to the door of the roaring furnace and called in, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the High God, come out here!”
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego walked out of the fire.
All the important people, the government leaders and king’s counselors, gathered around to examine them and discovered that the fire hadn’t so much as touched the three men—not a hair singed, not a scorch mark on their clothes, not even the smell of fire on them!Nebuchadnezzar said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego! He sent his angel and rescued his servants who trusted in him! They ignored the king’s orders and laid their bodies on the line rather than serve or worship any god but their own.
“Therefore I issue this decree: Anyone anywhere, of any race, color, or creed, who says anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego will be ripped to pieces, limb from limb, and their houses torn down. There has never been a god who can pull off a rescue like this.”
(excerpts from Daniel 3:16-29, TMV)
A beautiful story of complete Faith in God. Thank you, Amy….Love this!
That is soooo cool! Thanks for this!
After reading this and seeing your images, I think we should rename them Fire Lilies.
Blessings.